John Steinbeck won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1940 for his novel "The Grapes of Wrath." The novel tells the story of a poor family from Oklahoma who are forced to migrate to California in search of work during the Great Depression. The book was praised for its realism, its portrayal of the plight of the working class, and its beautiful prose.
The Pulitzer Prize is one of the most prestigious awards in American literature, and it is given to the best work of fiction published in the United States each year. Steinbeck's win was a major achievement, and it helped to establish him as one of the most important writers of his generation.